Mary Stuart, Queen of Scotland and former Queen of France, is the female lead and protagonist. She is the 18-year-old Queen of Scotland. She is the widow of Francis, to whom she had been engaged to since the age of six, and the mother of their unborn baby. She is the daughter of the late Dowager Queen, Marie de Guise whom she mostly had a strained relationship during the majority of her life and the half-sister of James Stuart. She is the daughter-in-law of Henry and Catherine. She is also the best friend of her former ladies-in-waiting: Aylee, Greer, Kenna and Lola. She was caught up in a love triangle between Sebastian and Francis, until she made a choice to wed Francis.

While living at the French Court, she has had many challenges coming toward her, such as Catherine plotting to kill her, Nostradamus' prophecy of Francis death, the duties as a Queen, trying to have a child with her husband, and the darkness that is filling her heart. Later on, Mary discovered Lola being pregnant with Francis' child, which caused a wedge in the friendship where Mary no longer trusted Lola and couldn't forgive her. Mary also got word of Scotland being in danger, and for the first time ever, she got a taste of real power of being a Queen.

When the Black Plague occurred, Mary was left with the French Court's fate in her hands. She began to struggle between justice and how court actually works. Her friendship with Lola was once again tested as Lola had Francis' son. Mary eventually accepted it and became the child's godmother. Mary's marriage began to fall apart as Francis continually did things behind her back and kept lying to her as he was hiding something from her. However, she still continued to love her husband and believed that he would do the right thing. She was eventually raped and later learned the truth to Francis killing his father and Narcisse blackmailing for it. After she killed her rapist and attackers with help from Louis Condé, whom she grew a strong friendship with, she told Francis that they should live separate lives as she blames him for everything that has happened. Francis not wanting to have a marriage like his parents, tried to win Mary back but she soon began a short-lived affair with Condé and was planning to run away to Scotland with him. Because of Mary's actions, chaos had spread. Mary betrayed Condé when she refused to leave France after nearly losing Francis to an illness. Condé became a traitor aligning himself with Queen Elizabeth, whom he had been courting. Condé and English troops gathered around the French Court, demanding that Francis give up his throne and Mary. She came up with a plan of her own to save everyone and take Condé down. In the end, Mary ultimately chose Francis, knowing that he is her soulmate.

As time went by, Mary's marriage was greatly improving but she became distraught when she learned that Francis was dying. With not much time left, Francis suggested that she marry Charles who would be the next King of France. She'd hesitantly at first agreed to do it but later changed her mind stating that France would no longer be able to protect her. Eventually, Francis illness got worse and died until Delphine saved him in exchange for another life which turned out to be Mary's mother. While celebrating Francis' recovery with a romantic trip, Mary and Francis were attacked by a band of assassins which ultimately led to Francis' death. Mary was devastated and was comforted by Catherine, making the two closer than ever. In the process, Catherine continued to support and protect Mary as well as giving her suggestions suitors that she could marry. Things began going badly in Scotland with the citizens refusing Mary's return. She eventually found a great ally in Rome, with the Vatican supporting her and needing to keep a Catholic monarch in power. Elizabeth's soon chose Mary as her next successor and she chose Mary as well as choosing her next husband, Robert Dudley. Eventually it was revealed that taking the offer, Rome was planning Elizabeth's assassination. Mary turned to Gideon Blackburn for help to prevent Elizabeth' death and the plan was successful.

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Early Life

Mary became the Queen of Scotland after her father died when she was only six days old. When she first arrived at French Court at the age of six engaged to Francis, she and Francis were playmates. She mentioned always chasing after him when they were young. Later, nine-year-old Mary was sent to live with the nuns at a convent for her safety. In the Pilot we see flashbacks of her and Francis playing with feathers and running up the stairs. Mary also mentioned learning to climb on a certain tree and that her and Francis used to wait to catch fireflies.

Throughout the Series

Personality

"She was really a remarkable woman. There is a little bit of literature out there about her personality. she was very witty, charming - a very intelligent woman. She spoke six languages, she played two different instruments, she rode, she hunted. she danced, she played golf."

Passionate and poised at the very beginning of her tumultuous rise to power, Mary is already a headstrong monarch. She will prove to be a formidable foe for anyone that stands in her way. She is also a great ally, as she wants to put people before herself. In For King and Country, Francis describes Mary as being headstrong, and strong in general. In Higher Ground, Cortenza de' Medici described Mary as being so talkitive and free with words as a child. As the series progresses, Mary becomes more stronger to stand for what she believes in. She has grown into an independent woman who will go to any length to protect the ones she loves and her country. However she will go against her husband and his family if necessary as she will always choose Scotland over France since they only have her. By the end of the first season, she tells Francis that she can feel herself become harder.

During the second season, Mary strives to be a Queen that Francis will be proud of. She refused to listen to Catherine and bow down to the nobles. She has been acknowledge as a strong and kind queen but lacks the political skills to rule successfully in Scotland. Catherine and Narcisse believed that she would cause France it's destruction. After her rape, Mary began to change, becoming cold and distant towards Francis. She begins to think of only of herself and becomes more selfish as she feels as a woman, she does not get to live more freely like men do. This leaded her to having a short-lived affair with Condé and planning to run away to Scotland with him. When Francis fell in, Catherine blamed Mary for her son's condition and everything that has happened. During this, she almost betrays Francis again when she plans to send in French troops to defend her country from the Protestants. However, Francis woke up before she could give the order. Francis allowed for French troops to head over to Scotland as France and Scotland are allies and are stronger when they honor their promises to each other even though she turned her back on the country who took her in and cared for her when she was a child. When he tells her he will use his second chance at life more wisely, she wonders if he regrets marrying her. Due to Francis deciding to never trust her again and everything that has happened, Mary begins to rethink the decisions she has made. She abandons Condé and her plans to go to Scotland with him in order to fix everything that she has done and regain Francis' trust. After Condé's threats and trying to claim the French throne, she took things into her own hands to take Condé down and redeclare her love for Francis as she has never stopped loving him. She also once again stood up to Catherine, willing to do whatever it took to punish Catherine for her cruel intentions towards Francis. Mary soon began a path of redemption due to her wrong choices and actions she had made.

Mary returned to her original self shortly before the events of the third season...

Physical Appearance

Mary is a beautiful young woman: tall and slender, with an oval-shaped face, long black hair, hazel eyes, and a creamy fair complexion.

When she was at the convent, Mary wore clothes of a lower class. However, when she is at court, she is dressed as befits her royal status: fancy attire and intricate gowns. Despite her tendency to wear many different colors, Mary's most prominent ones were white and black, with gold embellishments. She also has a particular fondness for lace, and wears flowing tops when she dons skirts. For accessories, she wears crowns, necklaces, belts, bracelets and rings.

In Chosen, Mary awoke with a necklace. When she took it outside to show to Sebastian, she noticed it had burnt her hand, leaving a scar shaped like stag antlers. Since the scar was not seen again after that episode, it could mean that it has probably healed.

"From the beginning I had this vision of her as two women: she's the warrior queen and she's the romantic. And I always feel like usually we embody both of those elements in her wardrobe, so if there's a harsh or strong detail, it will be accompanied by something light and feminine. Sometimes it's even just her hair which works into that. Something that pops to mind is this Alexander McQueen gown that we put her in in the second episode, that she wears when she meets Simon, the British lord…It's this insane, beaded almost kind of armored gown, and with her hair down and soft, it kind of softened it up and made it a little more romantic and mysterious rather than just harsh. So I feel like that's the balance usually with Mary." - Meredith Markworth-Pollack about Mary.

Francis is Mary's husband. They are childhood friends whom have been engaged since Mary was six. Mary was then sent to the convent and hadn't seen Francis for years until they were reunited in Pilot. They start off to a rocky start after Mary's arrival due to Francis being with another woman just as Mary wants to spend time with him. When someone starts to plot against Mary, Francis suspects it is his mother's doing and decides to protect Mary by whatever means necessary. He also promises to be her friend and stand by her side. While spending time together and getting to know one another, Francis' ways begin to change as Mary has a better influence on him; however, obstacles begin to get in the way such as Olivia, Bash, and Catherine's plotting. Bash feelings for Mary cause them to drift apart and Francis to go to Olivia. When Francis finally admits his love for Mary leading them to make love and create a better relationship. When Mary learns of the prophecy, she leaves the French Court with Francis devastated. Mary is returned to French Court by the guards and tells Francis the truth of why she left. Mary comes up with a plan to protect Francis; by choosing to marry Bash which causes Francis to leave the French Court. They are later reunited when Francis returns to the French Court to save his mother. The prophecy is later changed after the death of Catherine's firstborn, Clarissa, allowing Mary and Francis to be together. The two lived in happiness for a short period of time and later they learned Mary was pregnant. However, soon after letting Francis know she was pregnant, Mary miscarried the child. Soon after, she and Francis began to disagree over political decisions, causing tension between the two. Not long after that Mary is raped and pulls away from Francis romantically and begins a short lived affair with Condé. In the end however, Mary chose Francis and the two have rekindled their romance. (See Mary and Francis.)

Sebastian: Sebastian is Mary's ex-fiancé and half-brother-in-law. They first met in Pilot when Mary returned to court engaged to Bash's half brother, Francis. Bash and Mary started as close friends but when Mary and Francis began having problems, Bash stepped in to comfort her and they shared their first kiss. When Mary began to believe in a prophecy that predicted Francis' death if she married him. To protect Francis she initially runs away from court with Bash. They are however captured and brought back to court. She then decides to marry Bash and have him declared legitimate. They become engaged. When engaged Mary opened her heart to Sebastian and they grew to love and care for each other. When they were going to get married in secret because the pope had still not legitimized Bash and they wanted to force his hand. Francis learn of the wedding, shows up and starts fighting with his brother. Because he learnt that the prophecy was really about Clarissa, Catherine's first born. Bash tries to convince Mary that they can still get married. However when Catherine tells her she has a choice, Mary chose Francis. After Mary made her choice, Bash was exiled from court and when he returned Bash was married off to one of Mary's ladies-in-waiting. Since his return to court Bash and Mary have retained a friendly relationship. (See Mary and Sebastian.)

Louis: Mary and Louis first meet after Louis arrives at court with Francis. They quickly forge both a friendship and mutual alliance. As Louis has helped Mary with a few of her plans. He was the first person to know she miscarried after seeing her in pain. She begged him not to tell anyone if he considered himself a friend, as a good friend he didn't. But alerted Francis after that he should check on her. Over time Mary kept going to Louis for help and comfort when dealing with problems when Francis wouldn't help. After Mary was assaulted by a group of men, she began pulling away from Francis and growing closer to Condé. Sometime after Mary began having an affair with Condé, putting France and her husbands crown at risk. When she realised this, Mary took it upon herself to personally kill Condé so he could no longer vie for the throne. She stabbed him, however the wound was not fatal and Condé managed to escape.

Mary's relationship with Catherine started off antagonistic at the beginning of the series though Mary stated that Catherine was kind to her as a child. Mary had always believed that ever since her arrival at the French Court, Catherine has been plotting against her, not knowing why. Mary has had to keep her guard up not knowing what Catherine will do next. She has had the protection of Francis and help from her Ladies-in-Waiting to go up against Catherine. Later on, Catherine reveals the truth to Mary about the prophecy which causes Mary to change the line of succession; Francis and his brothers' losing the throne and Catherine losing her status as Queen. Catherine starts a series of plans to have Bash killed but fails after many attempts and is accused of adultery. Mary is apologizes to Catherine about everything that has happened, wishing for another way to save Francis and promises to take care of Charles and Henry Jr.. When the prophecy had been changed, Mary chose to be with Francis and starts to bond with Catherine. Catherine has been giving Mary advice to getting pregnant. (See Mary and Catherine.)

Marie: Marie is Mary's mother. When Mary was still a child, she became engaged to Francis and Marie sent her to live with them in France. Since that time Mary and her mother hadn't seen each other or communicated much apart from a few letters. Until Marie shows up to French Court to get Mary to marry Francis. Marie isn't a very caring and warm mother and Mary knows she's being deceived as to the reason of her mothers arrival. They had a cold and strained relationship but when Marie was in danger in Scotland, Mary went to great lengths to get her mother to safety. When her mother returns to France, tension ensues between the two when Marie pressures Mary for not yet providing and heir. Mary let go of her rage when she found out her mother was dying from and illness, wanting her to stay in France with her. Ending up having to say goodbye to her however, when Marie returns to Scotland to help secure her daughters rule.

James: James is Mary's illegitimate older paternal half-brother. Although they don't see each other due to the fact that they live in different countries. The two seem to be close and care about each other. Even though protestants are trying to put her brother on the throne instead of her, there doesn't seem to be any worry. She feels safe with him and he doesn't show any jealousy at his sisters crown. He's currently also helping Marie secure Mary's reign in Scotland.

Ladies-In-Waiting: Mary has a different bond of friendship with each of her ladies. With Greer, a loyal bond of friendship. Mary can always depend of Greer whenever she needs something or if she is in a troubled situation. Mary is most closest to Aylee. Aylee is someone that Mary can trust the most; whenever she’s freaking out she can go to Aylee. Kenna is one of the harder friendships for Mary. Kenna is out for her own personal gain and Mary is trying to protect her from that. Mary does not have the easiest friendship with Lola. Mary and Lola have had difficulties in their friendship; such as, Lola blaming Mary for Colin's death and Lola sleeping with Francis. Their friendships and their duty are strengthened by being thrust into this foreign court and, at points, under duress. It is brutal and they don’t have their families and all they have is each other.
(See Mary and Greer, Mary and Kenna, Mary and Lola, Mary and Aylee.)

Clarissa: From the beginning before Mary even knew Clarissa's name they'd been allies. Clarissa had a protecting nature over Mary always letting her know of eminent danger of threats. Even saving Mary's life after Catherine had poisoned her in her bathtub. Altough Mary didn't see her as a bad person. When Charles and Prince Henry's lives were threatened by Clarissa due to her jealousy of Catherine's affection for them, Mary hit Clarissa in the head with a rock. After her death, Mary and the others still believed she deserved a proper burial ordering the soldiers to do so, although they ignored the orders. Clarissa was thought to be dead however this is not true.

Tomás: In the beginning when Tomás arrived at court Mary believed he had intentions for Greer. He however later proposed to Mary when they went riding telling her he was to be legitimized and could give her what France could not. Not long after, Mary decided to accept the proposal. Before they became engaged Tomás was very sweet and charming but later when things became more official, his true nature subsided and he became very controlling of Mary whom was still in love with Francis and after seeing Tomás' cruel nature, wanted out of the engagement. Tomás was after killed by Francis and Mary was out of the engagement. (See Mary and Tomas.)

Olivia: Although Mary knew that Olivia was Francis' lover before she returned to court. She was kind and friendly to Olivia after she had been trough trauma in the Blood Wood. Little did she know that Olivia had returned at the request of Catherine to win Francis over from Mary. Not long after Olivia's return, Mary becomes Jealous of Francis' affection towards Olivia since he had kissed her. She later sought comfort in Sebastian, they kissed and when they did Francis caught them in the act. He and Mary then drifted apart and he drifted towards Olivia causing Mary to be angry and jealous. However Francis' love for Mary was very strong and he chose her over Olivia. (See Mary and Olivia.)

Name

Mary is a feminine given name which is the usual English form of Maria, which was the Latin form of the New Testament Greek names Μαριαμ (Mariam) and Μαρια (Maria) - the spellings are interchangeable - which were from the Hebrew name מִרְיָם (Miryam).. The meaning is not known for certain, but there are several theories including "sea of bitterness", "rebelliousness", and "wished for child". However it was most likely originally an Egyptian name, perhaps derived in part from mry "beloved" or mr "love".

Stuart is a surname of Scottish origin,and also an occupational name for an administrative official of an estate or steward, from Old English stig "house" and weard "guard". The Stewart family (sometimes spelled Stuart) held the Scottish crown for several centuries; one of the most famous members of the Stewart family was Mary, Queen of Scots.

Trivia

Mary Stuart of Scotland was born December 8, 1542, became Queen of Scotland at 6 days old, and died on February 8, 1587, at the age of 44.

Historically Mary was Queen of Scotland for 25 years

Mary was arranged to marry Francis when she was a small child, and moved to France later that year for protection.

At the age of 10 she was supposed to marry Prince Edward of England, a union between England and Scotland. When Mary was 6 months old the treaty was signed.

Mary had two brothers who died at infancy, two half-brothers from her mother's first marriage who died in childhood, and nine illegitimate siblings on her father's side.

Historically Mary's life is a tragic story with losing Francis and then later being forced to abdicate in favor for her young son.

Historically Mary is the eleventh great-grandmother of Queen Elizabeth II (through her son James, granddaughter Elizabeth Stuart, and great-granddaughter Sophia of Hanover who is the ancestor that UK law states that current succession comes from).

Adelaide Kane, the actress playing Mary, is a descendant of Mary, Queen of Scots and The House of Stuart through her mother's side.

In The Consummation, she signs her name Marie R because she was signing her title: Marie R. stands for Marie Regina, which is Latin for "Mary the Queen". Queen Mary I of England also signed her name this way.